Saturday, August 14, 2010

A solution to the fully-electric car charging problem

The problem with existing fully-electric cars is that there is no simple way to charge them and be able to take them long distances. The ideas below are my attempt to solve this problem for the future of electric vehicles.

A simple solution to the Electric car charging problem is to have removable batteries. If the batteries are removable they can be exchanged. These are some considerations in the manufacture of the batteries and their distribution.
  1. Electric cars must be made to use removable batteries.
  2. All Electric cars must use the same exact batteries so they are interchangeable.
  3. The batteries must be made with handles and must either be light enough to carry long distances or made with wheels attached which are sufficient size so they can be easily rolled long distances on pavement, gravel, or loose dirt.
  4. The batteries must be at the appropriate height in the vehicle to be inserted and removed from both the vehicle and the charging stations by a disabled person in a wheelchair.
  5. Gas stations and other stores must clearly mark on the outside of the building that they offer charged batteries for rent or for sale, and be able to exchange depleted batteries for charged ones. This is the EXACT SAME concept as propane tanks.
  6. Electric car owners may carry spare batteries in the vehicle so the batteries must be well sealed, be able to be stored at any angle for long periods of time and be protected against high temperatures and extreme cold.
  7. Electric car owners must be able to buy and charge their own batteries at home, charging them via a normal household mains socket.
  8. Vehicle manufacturers must offer an out-of-vehicle charging station to be used with the batteries, in addition to offering an in-vehicle charging solution which does not require the batteries to be removed for charging.

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